Dubai Islamic Bank posts 33.9 percent Q4 profit boost

Dubai Islamic Bank (DIB) has recorded a 33.9 percent rise in its fourth quarter net profit, helping it to a AED1.9bn ($517m) net profit for 2012.

The largest sharia-compliant lender in Dubai beat analyst forecasts to make AED336m ($91.5m) between the start of October and end of December, reports Reuters, up from AED251m ($68.3m) in the corresponding period last year.

Chairman of DIB, Mohammed al-Shaibani, said the bank saw healthy growth across a number of key areas, including asset and deposit bases.

Total assets increased 5.3 percent in 2012 to AED95.4bn ($26bn), while customer deposits were AED66.8bn ($18.18bn) at the end of December, up 2.9 percent on the end of 2011 but slightly lower than the AED66.9bn ($18.21bn) at the end of Q3 last year.

DIB’s board proposed a cash dividend of 15 pecent for 2012, subject to shareholder and regulatory approval, up from 12.5 percent in 2011.